The following statement was…

The following statement was submitted on 26 March 2021 to the Ontario Legislature's Committee reviewing Bill 257.

FoSTRA
chairfostra@gmail.com

Hello, my name is Don Young, I am the acting Secretary of FoSTRA, the Federation of South Toronto Residents Associations and I am here today on its behalf. I would like to start by thanking the Committee for hearing our submission on Bill 257. I will be addressing only Schedule 3.

FoSTRA was formed on 23 February 2021. Its boundaries stretch south of Bloor Street to Lake Ontario and the Toronto Islands, from the Don River to the Humber. These boundaries encompass five wards with some 400,000 citizens. FoSTRA is a non-partisan federation of residents and community associations that collaborate to:
• help shape the creation of good public policies at all levels of government,
• preserve and enhance the quality of life for Torontonians,
• promote neighbourhood identity and vitality, and
• ensure responsible and respectful development within its boundaries.

Ever since the current government took power on 6 June 2018, Ontario – and especially Toronto – has suffered a long list of provincial overreaches and abuses of power but Schedule 3 of this completely unrelated Bill 257 tops them all. What does the creation of super MZOs (Ministerial Zoning Orders) have to do with Supporting Broadband and Infrastructure Expansion?

Apparently, by sneaking in Schedule 3, this government:

• not content to bombard the province with 40 MZOs in 32 months – one-and-a-quarter MZOs per month. (The previous average was one per year);
• not content with ‘enhanced’ MZOs, which strip municipalities of any say in how MZO lands are used in their jurisdictions;
• the Government slips in Schedule 3 to retroactively remove all provisions of its own 2020 Provincial Policy Statement.

Not only is this a blatant attempt to squash lawsuits already lodged under the Ontario Planning Act, but it also aims to remove all future barriers and any possibility of lawsuits resulting from its MZOs.

In short, the current government seeks to make legal that which was previously illegal and use its 40% majority to usurp the authority of the legislature and give itself dictatorial powers.

Let us remind ourselves of the provisions in the Statement, and I quote directly:
“The Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) is a consolidated statement of the government’s policies on land use planning. It gives provincial policy direction on key land use planning issues that affect communities, such as:
• efficient use and management of land and infrastructure
• the provision of sufficient housing to meet changing needs, including affordable housing
• the protection of the environment and resources including farmland, natural resources (for example, wetlands and woodlands) and water
• opportunities for economic development and job creation
• the appropriate transportation, water, sewer and other infrastructure needed to accommodate current and future needs
• the protection of people, property and community resources by directing development away from natural or human-made hazards, such as flood prone areas”
All of these good planning directions in the 2020 PPS and all previous PPSes will be removed if Schedule 3 is passed. The legislation proposes the following:
“The Planning Act is amended to provide that ministerial zoning orders made under section 47 are not required and are deemed to never have been required to be consistent with policy statements . . . “

Specifically, “Clause 3 (5) (a) does not apply and is deemed never to have applied . . . ”

Currently, Clause 3 (5) states: “A decision of the council of a municipality, a local board, a planning board, a minister of the Crown and a ministry, board, commission or agency of the government, including the Tribunal, in respect of the exercise of any authority that affects a planning matter . . . shall be consistent with the policy statements . . .”

All of these directives of the 2020 PPS, and all of the decisions of these bodies based on directives in all previous PPSes since 1996 will no longer apply.
If this passes, it will mean, for example, that the Foundry site, which the Ontario government secretly agreed to sell to an unknown developer in a no-bid deal, will have no conditions attached other than a hidden, lucrative agreement for both the buyer and seller. The Duffins Creek wetlands are still an issue, as are all MZOs across the province. Who knows what Schedule 3 will mean in the future? Ontario will be open to business but, under MZOs, closed to good public policy.

FoSTRA respectfully demands that Schedule 3 be struck from the unrelated Bill 257 before passage.
If not, FoSTRA would support an Ontario-wide challenge in the courts.